Thursday, September 30, 2010

Thanks to this anonymous tip, but apparently someone on the floor of the NYSE is a Phishead. Check out the video below. It's CNBC's segment "Word on the Street" and at the 20 second mark of the clip, one of the floor brokers quoted a lyrics from Backwards Down the Number Line, which is gotta be one of the coolest secret birthday wishes ever sent to Trey...

Thanks to my buddy who sent me this video. And Happy Birthday, Big Red!

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

One of the funniest things I read last year was the Jaded Review's Guide to Hippie Watching in North America. Seriously, the Guide to Hippie Watching is some of the best humor about our scene I have ever read. Pure genius. I was super excited when I got the email today that they finished Volume 2. Check out what they have to say:

"Good News! The new 32 page Jaded Review is finished and ready to ship! This issue is the hippie watching guide pt II - The raiders of the lost archetypes. The archetypes include Trimmers, Stoners, Ravers, Dreadnecks, Crusties, Gem Wrappers, promoters, Schwillers, muppetPunks and many more. This time around we worked a little harder on forming legible coherent sentences, professionally printed the covers and actually edited it and ran spell-check. Additionally, we redid the covers for the other two issues and put up bundle packages so you can easily get all the jaded reviews you can stomach in one go."

Im super excited to read the new edition, especially what they say about the Trimmers- I know a few of them. You can order here or come over next week and take a gander at my copy.

This summer I met the talented artist and music fan Rob Peper at Panic Red Rocks. Pep illustrated a series of trucker hats with Panic songs for his crew of friends. I thought it was a great idea and later in the summer I commissioned a series of hats for Jonas, Pauly, Wildo, Fink and myself of our favorite Phish songs for Telluride.

These works of art are now for sale. Pep will make a custom design for you for $40, or if you want something similar to what he has already done, its $30. If you want a custom hat, just send him the name of the song or idea, and he will make a design. Pep will do other bands besides Panic and Phish- these are just examples.

If you are ordering a new custom design, please be patient and gracious. Pep is an artist and please respect his time and creativity. When Pep made the Ghost, 2001, Piper, Slave, and Tweezer hats for us I just told them a little about who they were for and the song I wanted the design for, and that they were for Telluride. Notice Pauly's Slave hat has poker chips in it - a nice touch I think.

A few examples of his work are pictured below. Check out the flickr page for more designs. Pep will be in town for the Broomfield, CO shows if you want to meet him or buy something in person, we can arrange that.

Please put in the message in your order what design or idea for a design you are interested in. If you have questions or comments, please email peper.rob@gmail.com

Set 2: Born Cross-Eyed > New Potato Caboose > Cryptical Envelopment > Other One > Unbroken Chain > Let it Grow > Mountain Song > Morning Dew, Playin' in the Band

Encore: Donor Rap, Box of Rain

Sort of a birthday show for me. Known fact... I have never seen Phish on my birthday, but caught my first ever Grateful Dead show on my 15th birthday at MSG in NYC. My life has never been the same since.

My girlfriend went away on a business trip, so I went to this show with my buddy Bob. We used to see Phish and the Dead together back in college. In the 1990s, some of my best bootlegs (on Maxell IIs cassette tapes) were sourced from Bob's roommate. Lucky for me, Bob acted as designated driver so I could get sloshed and shitty and not worry about getting from the Greek back to my flat in the slums of Beverly Hills.

The Greek Theatre in LA is nestled in Griffin Park in the hills just north of Los Feliz. It's much smaller compared to the sister theatre in Berkeley and seats less than 6,000 people. We found non-stacked parking for an extra $5. Some guy in a Lexus snuck into the lot and asked to use our parking stub so he wouldn't get busted. Bob said no because the guys was driving a Lexus and could afford to custy it up and pay $20 for parking.

Didn't see a Shakedown. Late arriving crowd was stuck in traffic and still making their way to the Greek as of 6:30pm. Lots of people with index fingers pointed up to the skies in search of miracles. Few extras floating around. Old hippie who looked like Abe Vigoda offered me liquid sunshine. When I followed the Dead, I was the teenager embedded with thirty-something and 40+ year old hippies. The older I get, the higher the median age at Dead shows grow. No joke, but I passed one guy in a walker as he climbed up the hill to the Greek. Man, I wonder if that's gonna be me at Phish shows in 25 years?

We had the middle section, which didn't matter too much because the sound is crisp if you're anywhere in the middle. Even a taper sat in front of us. The last time I was at the LA Greek? Phil and Friends a few summers ago when Grace Potter opened for them.

Furthur included just Bobby and Phil with Joe Russo on drums and John K, the dude from Dark Star Orchestra on Jerry guitar. Nice mixture of youth with the savvy vets. The moon was out and about hovering above the theatre with Jupiter also visible in the twilight sky. Furthur opened with a twisting and windy Alligator. The band was still getting warmed up, so they length of the jam out surprised me. I got used to Phish trimming their jamming time to squeeze in more songs, and here's guys twenty years their senior ripping it up to start the show. A sloppy segue into Caution ensued and at that point, I knew what to expect the rest of the show. The first two songs, off of Anthem of the Sun, dictated the theme of the night. Anthem was one of the few studio albums released in the 1960s, and Bobby and Phil dug deep into their repertoire... how deep? I wasn't born yet when they originally recorded those tracks.

The crowd's energy surged for Good Lovin'. The Dead put their own unique spin on that cover over the years and the crowd always lapped it up. At that point, the shaky and rusty start had subsided and everything was sounding smooth. Bob pointed out that Russo was going off during Muli Guli, and indeed he was among the MVPs of the show.

The crowd erupted during the opening notes of China Cat Sunflower, which would be played without the accompanying I Know You Rider. Instead, the band threw a curve ball with Ramble On Rose for a high energy sing-a-long with John K leading the way. Expected an IKYR, but Mason's Children, another deep cut, was next on the menu. Two high school girls snuck into the empty seats in the row in front of us during Mason's. They were twirling in a sea of tie-dye shirts, many of which were probably older than them.

The seven-song first set ended rather quickly and clocked in at 63 minutes. The highlights were China Cat > Ramble On Rose. I was drinking and was kinda sloppy by the time setbreak began. During the 45-minute break, we joked that Bobby and Phil needed naps. During break, a couple of wooks were hanging out nearby. They were smoking tuff and sipping on a flask.

Setbreak at the Greek, taken from behind the stagePhoto by @furthurband

The second set (almost an hour and 45 minutes including the encore) impressed me mainly because my expectations were lowered after the first set, and that they jammed out all the way until the 11pm curfew. Bobby and Phil returned to the Anthem of the Sun theme with Born Crosseyed > New Potato Caboose, but they reversed the songs as it appeared on the album. They finished up the rest of the album with Cryptical Envelopment > Other One. By that point, I was no longer drunk but rather super faded. Talk about a 180 degree turn. I got sucked down the rabbit hole with the jam out of Unbroken Chain. It was the only rare Dead song that I was hoping to hear (aside from St. Stephen and Cosmic Charlie) and I got it.

Initially, I wasn't thrilled with the selection of Let it Grow. I've never been a Bobby fan, but let me say that they won me over with this version. My buddy Bob thought it was the highlight of the second set. The version started out choppy and Bobby flubbed the lyrics. He's always been dyslexic and sometimes the teleprompters don't work for him, so maybe he needs someone speaking the lyrics to him in an earpiece? The powerful jam made up for the flub.

One of the high school girls was taping Let It Grow with her iPhone while she danced next to taper guy with the old school rig that he had to patch up with duct tape at set break. That moment was a perfect example of the shift in technology and the gap between the generations.

IronGirl mentioned Mountain Song in an email earlier that day and sure enough, they played it. She reminded me that it was an original tune created by members of the Dead and CSNY. Kinda cool to hear it at the Greek.

Morning Dew is always one of those special moments at a Grateful Dead show, especially when you're peaking on acid. John K always nailed the Jerry parts with Dark Star Orchestra and he continued his strong performance playing the role of Jerry Garcia with a smoking version of Dew. At that point, I was spent after ninety minutes of straight jamming with just one breather in between. Heck, I had to sit down before the encore.

Phil gave his usual donor rap and explained that he was only sharing this amazing music because of an organ donor. He followed it up with Box of Rain. Here's am excerpt that I found...

I headed to the pisser on my way out. Shoeless wook was standing in the urinal next to me. I guess I wasn't paying attention and my stream veered off course. After a few seconds, we both realized that I was pissing on the wall, which trickled onto his bare feet. He didn't seemed too pissed and asked me for "some yay." I told him that I didn't have any cocaine to sell and that I was sorry I urinated on his dirty feet.

I had fun with Furthur. Go in with no expectations, get shitty, and re-live those old memories. You will definitely have fun too. Awesome to see a show with Bob, whom I haven't seen a concert with since 1994 (Phish at the Fox in Atlanta). We used to see so many Dead shows together that it was cool to try to recapture some of those golden memories of our youth.

Phil Lesh (70 years young) and Bobby Weir (mid-60s) are still bringing it night after night. It'll never be like it used to, but the new blood (Russo and John K) help keep the vibe going. And yes, the music is bittersweet because it makes me miss Jerry. I've seen over 200 Phish shows and I'd give it all up to see one Dead show circa 1977.

Last weekend Colorado Bisco fans were treated to a special Tractorbeam show at Mishawaka Amphitheater. Tractorbeam is The Disco Biscuits' alter ego: the four memebers of The Disco Biscuits perform without any singing. Allen and Barber were playing rented instruments and they are without the normal Bisco lights and crew.

The video total is 1:16:42. There is an intro that shows the winding road through Poudre canyon up to The Mish and a taste of the scene inside and outside The Mish. Conspirator footage starts at about 5:30 and he got the two songs with Murph from STS9.

Tractorbeam footage starts at about 18:30 and includes Spraypaint > On Time > Tricycle > Bombs > Portal To An Empty Head > Papercut.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Heya folks. If you play poker and you're going to see Phish in Atlantic City, then you should check out the 2010 Phamily Poker Classic. It will take place on Saturday, October 30th at the Tropicana. Start time is noon. Final table will be played on Halloween. All proceeds will go to the Mockingbird Foundation and help support music education for kids.

This past weekend, Katie and I took a trip to Breckenridge, CO to attend the annual Oktoberfest, and see Yamn Saturday night at Three20South. I wasnt planning on writing about this show, but was so impressed by the band and venue that I feel compelled to do so.

Im going to start with the venue. I have seen only a handful of shows at Three20South throughout the years, and most of them were under the old ownership when it was Sherpa & Yett's. I think I have just become used to shitty service at venues, because I was truly surprised by how well the place was run, and also by the high level of customer service at Three20South. It's strange to even use the term "customer service" when talking about about a venue because its so rare to receive any at a show.

Yamn sold out the show with aprox. 300 in attendance, and with two bartenders, I never waited more than a couple of minutes to get a drink. In addition, even with how hard these two girls were working their asses off, they still found a way to remain pleasant and keep a smile on their faces all night long. At one point, I saw the owner bar backing - something I have NEVER seen before.

Now for the part that sold me on this venue. I don't know about you, but when I go into a bathroom at a venue, I expect the toilets to be filled to the rim with piles of shit. However, during Yamn's second set, I walked into the bathroom and found the door guy plunging a toilet.

"What is this guy doing? He is the door guy! Why is he cleaning the toilet? He should be checking ID's and yelling at people..."

This is what I thought to myself as I watched him plunge. It was obvious that the staff at Three20South truly wants the patrons of their venue to enjoy themselves. They care about promoting the scene, keeping it clean, and making it friendly. In my opinion this makes Three20South, Summit County's premiere music venue.

Yamn blows my mind and exceeds my expectations EVERY time I see them. The week before this show, I was able to catch my first "real" STS9 show in 3 years, and I was not impressed. I couldn't pinpoint why until I saw Yamn this past weekend and realized that STS9 has lost their soul. They are not inspired, their music is filled with noisy Ableton tracks which clutter the sound, and they are simply moving through the motions of their songs without feeling them. When I watched Yamn perform, I noticed a level of excitement and inspiration that infected the crowd all night long. They feel the music and have a fire that burns in their playing, taking the listener on a roller coaster of rage.

One of the highlights from Saturday night was the ongoing Top Gun theme in the two sets. At one point they played a version of the Kenny Loggins hit, Danger Zone. I am not a fan of this song at all, however they played a version that had the entire room going apeshit. I don't have any video from Saturday night, but here is a little taste from The Fox Theater in Boulder a few months ago.

If you live on the West Coast or in the Mid-West, make sure you check out Yamn - A Hearty Buffet for the Hungry Ear!

Monday, September 20, 2010

This weekend I went to The Mabon Festival at Planet Bluegrass in Lyons, CO. Mabon is a fancy name for a small 300 person camping event with Adam and Ben from Yonder Mountain String Band playing a special night of acoustic music. I was lucky enough to be right behind my friend Ellen who shot this video of The Boxer (Simon + Garfunkle).

Friday, September 17, 2010

I know a few friends personally affected by the Four Mile Canyon Fire, and it is awesome that we can come together for a fantastic night of music to help out.

Colorado's music community comes together for "Fourmile Canyon Revival," a remarkable night of music to raise funds for individuals and families directly affected by the devastating Fourmile Fire near Boulder. The benefit concert will take place on Saturday, October 9th at 1st Bank Center in Broomfield, CO.

Jon Fishman, Mike Gordon, Page McConnell and Trey Anastasio will take part in the event, on the eve of their fall tour. Colorado was the site of Phish's first extended tour outside of the Northeast, and the band has always felt a deep connection to the community. The event features The String Cheese Incident, Big Head Todd & The Monsters, Yonder Mountain String Band, and Leftover Salmon's Vince Herman & Drew Emmitt.

All proceeds will go directly to the Boulder Mountain Fire Relief Fund. The Fund supports the local volunteer fire departments that courageously fought the recent fire and the mountain residents whose lives were directly impacted by this disaster and are in critical need of financial support.

Tickets to "Fourmile Canyon Revival" go on sale this Tuesday, September 21st, at 10:00 A.M. Mountain Time at http://www.tickethorse.com/. For more information, click here.

I appeared on the TV webcast of This Week in Poker yesterday to plug my book Lost Vegas. If you like poker (or want to see Lacey Jones in a bathrobe), then can view the entire show below.

Just a heads up, a little bit of a Phishy discussion breaks out in one segment. At the 45:40 mark, I got asked about my Hartford Whalers t-shirt which branches off into a discussion of Phisheads and when the Phish book is coming out.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

I enjoyed this Burning Man 2010 video. I had similar experiences to the ones captured is in this 10 minute clip. The end documents the somber mood of the Temple Burn in a beautiful way. Thanks to Fink for the link!

Friday, September 10, 2010

Chef Bliss is back with Yacht Rock 4. He put this on during a pre-party last week before Yonder Red Rocks. Later in the evening things got out of hand and the cops were called. Only play if you are prepared for the party that is bound to happen.

Thursday, September 09, 2010

Last month we posted Chapters 1 & 3 of the You Enjoy My Summer 2010 Mix created by our good friend, Hal Masa from Tokyo. They were a huge hit, and people have been blowing us up asking for the missing chapter 2. Well, here is Chapter 2 as well as Chapter 4 - The Final Chapter. Don't miss out on these - they are REALLY GOOD!

This year was my first of what I feel will be many Burning Man adventures. As a virgin, I did not fully understand the size of the party and the effort that is put into building Black Rock City until I arrived. Simply put, Burning Man is the biggest party I have ever been a part of, and it may be the biggest party on the Planet Earth.

I have edited together a group of video clips and pictures from my experience. I estimate that I saw 10% of all the things that went on at Burning Man. Its a huge party, and everyone has their own unique experiences. Many of us got to see the large art installations and saw some of the same DJs play at Nexus or Root Society, but overall there is so much to see and do at Burning Man you just have to go out there and take it in for yourself to fully get it.

Burning Man cannot be compared to anything else I have experienced. It has aspects of the lot scene of a festival like Bonnaroo or a Phish festival, but is very different because there is no shakedown and there is no exchange of money for goods. Many of my friends have asked if I liked Burning Man better than Jam Cruise, and the answer is that I like both...for completely different reasons. Its like asking me to compare my friend's dog to my cat. I love them both, but they are very very different.

More than anything else, I loved the adventure and freedom at Burning Man. The creativity is incredible. The conditions out in on the Playa are extreme, and the amount of money and effort put into building the large structures out there blew my mind. Many times I felt like I was on a different planet. Many times I probably was.

Burning Man at night is something that I love. I loved riding my bike though the Playa and being part of the sea of lights. Those of you who have been there know what I mean...those of you who have not will have to imagine what its like to fly a spaceship though a battle scene out of Star Wars. But on a bike. In the desert.

I will go back, hopefully next year and many years after that. If you have any questions that need answering, I'll try to answer them. I find it difficult to sum up my experience as it seems many before me have. I can only encourage you to go, at least once. See you next year.

I am still recovering from Burning Man but hope to have a full report and videos to you later in the week. One of the highlights of my Burn was a couple of sets by DJ/Producer Opiuo. Opiuo was born in New Zealand and now lives in Melbourne, Australia. Burning Man was his first trip to America...and he treated us to some bassy breakbeat glitch that I thought were the best dance sets I experienced. Check out his album, it reminds me a bit of Tipper's music. If you like it, please support him and hopefully we will see him back in America soon.

Tuesday, September 07, 2010

Here's a bone for all you Phish DVD freaks. On October 19th, there will be a new DVD titled Coral Sky. Sounds like the name of a porn star, but that's the name of the theatre where the boys played in 1996. The latest video release will be an entire concert that happened in the days after the epic Halloween show in Atlanta when the boys covered the Talking Heads' Remain in the Light. Two days later, they opened up a monster second set with Crosseyed > Antelope. This show featured Santanta's drummer on percussion for the entire show. The Allman Brother's Band drummer sat in for the encore.

Welcome to the September 2010 Edition of Background Beats. This month we continue to explore some more of the same themes and artists from August. I have really been enjoying these artists, so I did something that I have never done before - repeat artists from last month. If you liked the August edition, you will also like September. If not, well, I hope to see you next month!

Friday, September 03, 2010

Some of you will hate this but as an old-school Deadhead who grew up during the days of disco and who also likes dance/electronica/trance music I approve. Imagine Jerry rocking this out in that white suit he wore on the Go To Heaven album. Now Get out your glow sticks and polyester put on your Disco Ball Helmets, put your hands in the air and listen to this great remix of the Grateful Dead Classic - Shakedown Street.

Spreading the good word about the socially conscious fans of the Phish who have donated over $1 million to various charitable causes.

Here's the press release...

Two organizations founded and operated by fans of the rock band Phish announced today that they have raised and distributed a combined $1,000,000 for charity. The joint announcement was made by The Mimi Fishman Foundation, which raises funds through online auctions, and The Mockingbird Foundation, which publishes historical information about Phish in print and online. Both organizations are operated on an all-volunteer basis, with no salaries, paid staff, or offices.

The Mockingbird Foundation was organized in 1996 by Craig DeLucia and a dozen other fans to raise funds for music education for children through the publication of an encyclopedic book about Phish and its music. Expanding its efforts to include the cultivation and distribution of Phish-related intellectual property more generally, the Foundation has published two editions of a 900-page book, released a double-disc tribute album, produced a variety of tour-friendly merchandise, and re-launched the Phish.net website as a comprehensive database with a dozen mobile extensions. As a result of these efforts, as well as direct donations, the Mockingbird Foundation has been able to fund 193 grants (in 42 states) totaling over $613,000. www.mbird.org

The Mimi Fishman Foundation was organized in 1998, by Mimi Fishman (mother of Phish drummer Jon Fishman) and family friend David Shulman, to raise funds for vision-related charities through online auctions of Phish-donated memorabilia. While expanding its focus of charitable giving to include women, children, and animal-related charities, the Foundation also expanded its musical reach by receiving donated auction items from other bands, including The String Cheese Incident, Yonder Mountain String Band, and Umphrey’s McGee. The Mimi Fishman Foundation has administered over 30 online auctions resulting in grants being made to 38 organizations totaling over $390,000. www.mimifishman.org

Communal efforts by Phish fans reflect the history of the band itself. Phish earned commercial success during the 1990s stealthily, with little radio play and a video that primarily aired as joke fodder on Beavis and Butthead. They evolved from a rumored bar band to an idolized arena organization, benefiting from ingenuity and courage as much as from talent. Ingenuity and courage also drove fans of the same period to begin orchestrating charitable works at shows: the Green Crew collected trash from venue surroundings, the Karma Crew and Clifford Care Bears discouraged hard drug use, the Phellowship provided camaraderie for sober fans, and the Phunky Bitches provided support to female fans. While several of those nascent elements continue, the charitable ambitions of volunteer fans expanded alongside Phish's success. Groups incorporated, boards of directors were formed, and Phish fan philanthropy was born.

The Mockingbird and Mimi Fishman Foundations look forward to many more years of serving Phish fans and grantees alike. Each has already raised the funds for additional grants to be announced this fall, and each is underway with new plans to continue their success.